Save space on your PC with OneDrive Files On-Demand
January 11, 2025

Save space on your PC with OneDrive Files On-Demand

It is very important to have free disk space on your PC for files, data and applications. Instead of storing files permanently on disk, you can use OneDrive File On Demand feature to help you free up space for other things. This allows you to view your collection of files from your computer without having to download them. This will move your file space to the cloud, leaving you room for other important items on your computer.

Once you’re in OneDrive, you’ll still see your files in File Explorer with a thumbnail and metadata included as a “placeholder”. The files you open will then be downloaded to your computer using this web-only feature. Only those files and folders that you designate to always be on your device take up disk space. There are several ways to start and use Files On-Demand, so let’s take a look at them.

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How to disable backup of OneDrive folders in Windows 11

Windows 11 has an annoying feature that automatically backs up and syncs certain folders to OneDrive. Here’s how to turn it off.

Enable Files On Demand in OneDrive

  1. Click the button OneDrive icon on the taskbar, click Help & Settings (gear icon) and click Settings from the menu.

  2. Click Synchronization and backup from the left panel.

  3. Scroll down, expand Advanced settings section and click Free up disk space under Files on demand chapter.

When you initially enable this feature, even files installed as Always stay on this device will be sent to OneDrive. So you will need to reset them in order for them to be available on your drive. Keep in mind that the only way to access files using this feature is through an Internet connection.

Enable files on demand from File Explorer

You can also enable and use this feature directly from File Explorer to free up space for a bunch of files. This is useful if you already manage your files and folders.

  1. Launch File Explorer and open OneDrive folder on the left panel.

  2. Select the files and folders you want to move from your local drive to the cloud.

  3. Right-click on the selected fragment and click Make room from context menu to make them on demand.

  4. A notification will appear as soon as your files are uploaded to OneDrive.

  5. While you’re here, right-click on the files and folder and select Always stay on this device to download files so they are available on your computer without the Internet.

You can select multiple files and folders from your OneDrive directory in File Explorer holding Shift or Ctrl and clicking elements.

Launch OneDrive files on demand

From the Settings app using Storage Sense

You can also run files on demand and manage them from Windows 11 Settings app using these steps.

  1. Open Settings app.

  2. Go to System -> Storage -> Memory Control.

  3. Under Username – Personal In the section, select the number of days that files will remain online only if they are not open. You can choose from 1 to 60 days.

  4. Click the button Run memory control now button.

Select Never option if you don’t want OneDrive to make your files available online only.

Using Files on Demand in Windows 11

No matter how you use OneDrive’s Files on Demand feature in Windows 11, it can help you free up disk space. The amount of space you can free up will depend on the type and size of files you use this feature with. Large spreadsheets, PDFs and PowerPoint files will take up a lot of disk space. You can use this with photos and media files, but you won’t be able to access them as easily as other files.

However, it’s important to note that documents you open that are stored in OneDrive will be downloaded to your computer and will take up space on your drive. So you will have to restart it to get them back on your computer. An effective way to deal with the irritation is to use the Settings app and set the Storage Sense setting to a lower number of days.

2025-01-10 21:00:17

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